Peter Do Slowed Down
Walking into Peter Do’s show space a long elevator ride from the ground, you were stopped by the arresting view through the wall of windows: the blue sky framing a huge, graceful green copper pyramid (the tower roof of the Woolworth Building), and far beyond it, the Statue of Liberty, a tiny vertical sliver.
The view was both compelling and serene, much like Do’s collection. Do is the farthest thing from a trend-monger. In a short time, he has built a luxury-space identity based on tailoring, and this season, he decided to slow down a bit and reexamine what he’s done. “Sometimes you need to look back in order to move forward,” he said. “I believe that newness doesn’t always come from scratch.”
Which is not to say Do doesn’t know how to make a splash. To herald the launch of his men’s wear, he opened his show with Jeno** of the K-pop group NCT, his appearance part of Do’s collaboration with SM Entertainment. Jeno** wore a beautifully cut suit, a single button fastening a defined waist and in back, a large, skin-baring cutout. The addition of men’s felt natural. Many men were already wearing the clothes, and much of Do’s work will continue to cross genders. “We don’t just dress women or men. We dress people,” he said.
Then out came two similar silhouettes, in leather and in ivory suiting, and soon, the signature that has so beguiled the fashion set: Do’s four-piece suit – jacket, shirt, skirt, trouser, here with a giant shoulder bag. There were also impressive coats, some deconstructed to exhibit the inner work involved in their creation.
More relaxed looks featured beautiful shirts, often with extra-long sleeves. Many were wrapped at the waist over pants. Do worked in some easy dresses and long, sweeping skirts belted over minis beneath. The polish never waned.
Taking in Do’s work, one roots for him to build a major luxury brand for the long haul. There’s an elegant, adult sensuality to his work of a kind rare in American fashion today. It will be a pleasure to watch him develop it further.